Main Street Electrical Parade extended through August?

[DDhunter]

I am definitely not pleased by this. I saw MSEP and I thought it was cute. Then I saw Paint the Night during the 60th and it was beyond phenomenal. Super disappointed for my August trip. Oh well, one less thing to worry about doing. I don't find it worth seeing again.

 

[Abbey1]

Count me in the disappointed camp. We caught MSEP in February and enjoyed it, but PTN is a whole new level of awesome. I was really looking forward to watching it again in July or August.

This MSEP extension is making me question when exactly Fantasmic! will be returning as well. I had assumed that "summer 2017" would have meant the beginning of the summer, and thought perhaps it would return along with PTN when MSEP left in June.


I've been waiting for an announcement about the return of Fantasmic!, the railroad etc. before we book our summer trip. I wish they would come out with an official return date!

 

[GatorChris]

I'm really bummed about this. I have a seminar at the Anaheim Convention Center in August, and we were going to do DL why we were there. I was so excited thinking PtN would be back. Instead, we get a parade that was outdated 25 years ago. Yeah, yeah, nostalgia and all. But how many times do they need to retire this parade? On with the new, please.

And what's worse, as I think about this, is that MSEP will end right at the end of summer. Which means they WON'T be bringing back PtN just as the "off-season" begins. Which means we may not see PtN until Christmas or possibly even 2018. That really really really stinks.

 

[mom2rtk]

And what's worse, as I think about this, is that MSEP will end right at the end of summer. Which means they WON'T be bringing back PtN just as the "off-season" begins. Which means we may not see PtN until Christmas or possibly even 2018. That really really really stinks.

That's an interesting point. I could see that happening.

But Fantasmic will debut at some point. I still think they want to roll them out at the same time.

 

[Winnowill]

Here's what I don't understand, reading this thread - everyone is talking about how much they want to see PtN (and I get that - it's an awesome parade)...but nowhere has there been anything from Disney about the future fate of that parade. There's no guarantee that it's coming back AT ALL, much less when it would, assuming it does. People who are scheduling trips with the expectation that they'll see PtN are gambling. It doesn't even appear on the website any more.

 

[mom2rtk]

Here's what I don't understand, reading this thread - everyone is talking about how much they want to see PtN (and I get that - it's an awesome parade)...but nowhere has there been anything from Disney about the future fate of that parade. There's no guarantee that it's coming back AT ALL, much less when it would, assuming it does. People who are scheduling trips with the expectation that they'll see PtN are gambling. It doesn't even appear on the website any more.

Well, most people can't wait until 2 weeks out to schedule a trip. And lately that's when they've been filling in entertainment information on the schedule. And there had previously been an end date listed for MSEP. I think it was reasonable to think PTN would be back for peak summer crowds.

 

[MacMama0930]

I'm really bummed about this. I have a seminar at the Anaheim Convention Center in August, and we were going to do DL why we were there. I was so excited thinking PtN would be back. Instead, we get a parade that was outdated 25 years ago. Yeah, yeah, nostalgia and all. But how many times do they need to retire this parade? On with the new, please.

And what's worse, as I think about this, is that MSEP will end right at the end of summer. Which means they WON'T be bringing back PtN just as the "off-season" begins. Which means we may not see PtN until Christmas or possibly even 2018. That really really really stinks.

This was my thought exactly. If PtN isn't there for summer, it's likely not coming back until Christmas time...and our APs expire in October. Wah!!

But really, I was very surprised about this announcement. I was 95% sure PtN would be back in the summer

 

[T0rrent]

I know people are excited to see PtN come back, but I think a lot of you were setting yourself up for disappointment thinking it would return immediately after MSEP. Disney never gave a date on when PtN would return, and from talking to people some of the floats needed a lot of work/refurbishment. It was also a difficult parade for the dancers due to the heat generated from the lights, in particular Belle who basically slow roasts during the parade.

My theory is PtN was no where near being ready yet, and since MSEP is still selling out (seriously, I've never heard an announcement that seating for PtN was full and to wait for the second parade, but it happens regularly with MSEP), they decided to extend it to make sure PtN is fixed right.

 

[disneyland_is_magic]

I am also a big fan of PTN! One has to wonder if extending to summer was ALWAYS the plan, they did haul this parade cross country and train dozens of performers and probably custom make all kinds of costumes. Maybe they only revealed the first half of the run because
A. If it was unpopular they could pull it in June
B. Disneyland refuses to commit to long term things to keep their relaxed, we aren't uptight, type A personalities like WDW and we denounce that way of living.
C. It just suddenly occurred to them like...oh! We need to release park hours for April and oh! Should we open this summer? Should we have a parade?! Just exactly how they made Easter plans on the fly.
I dunno.

 

[BriannaRuth]

We've never seen MSEP but did see PtN last year ... loved it and are now planning to see MSEP as a result. What's the difference between the two? Aren't they both night time parades with lights? I must be missing something because PtN seems to be more popular.

 

[Xenorye]

PtN is like MSEP on steroids. PtN has more variety in the music (and is thus far less annoying), brighter LED lights, and feels more like a party. It's great. MSEP has charm, though.

 

[disneyland_is_magic]

The age is a big thing, MSEP started in 1972 and has been hauled all over while PTN is new. There are certainly plenty of people who get emotional talking about either or both. I don't think it's MSEP is bad, but that PTN is out of this world. What condition would PTN be in after 40 years and criss crossing the country a few times?
What's the cost difference is running them? Anyone know?

 

[dalstitch45]

I just followed the link, and it says August 20 is the fade away date. I still like PTN much better.

 

[ClaraOswald]

Since we arrive in the parks on June 22nd, I am happy about this news. Because with the previous date of MSEP leaving (June 18th) I knew that meant that there would be NO nighttime parade for our trip. But now there will be....so I am happy!

 

[pinksand]

I totally agree with everyone who misses PtN - I love that parade and was dearly hoping it would return for the summer.

The part I don't understand is why MSEP is going through 8/20 - at that point, why not run it through Labor Day? That's the part that seems odd to me. Some AP's come off blackout on 8/21 and some kids don't go back to school until after Labor Day.

 

[GatorChris]

We've never seen MSEP but did see PtN last year ... loved it and are now planning to see MSEP as a result. What's the difference between the two? Aren't they both night time parades with lights? I must be missing something because PtN seems to be more popular.

The only thing MSEP has going for it is nostalgia. People love it because they remember it from when there were a kid. I'm sure it was amazing when it first came out in 1972, and was still good through the 80s. But tech has come a long way since then. I saw this at WDW in 2012 and couldn't believe they'd ditched the awesome Spectromagic for this. And now they've ditched PtN to bring this show back. We saw it in early March and it was about the same for me. While it was a decent parade, it's nowhere near PtN. It's just not as "Disney" in my estimation. Sure it has characters in it. But it also has a lot of weird stuff - nothing screams Disney like half-lit-up turtles and bumblebees spinning around making weird digital farting noises. That was sarcasm, BTW.

 

[ClaraOswald]

Thankfully, my three year old doesn't care about the latest technology out there. If he can stay awake for it, I think he'll love it.

 

[agamble]

We've never seen MSEP but did see PtN last year ... loved it and are now planning to see MSEP as a result. What's the difference between the two? Aren't they both night time parades with lights? I must be missing something because PtN seems to be more popular.

We haven't seen PTN yet, so that is our reason for wanting to see it. However, I think it is largely a technology thing. MSEP is old and outdated. PTN was new and spectacular. I just hope they bring back PTN sometime during the next year so I can see it. Still bummed they actually ditched the fireworks when the 60th was over. We were there during the first day of the 60th, but we left because the crowds were insane. We had extended our trip by one day because we wanted to see the show, but then decided it wasn't worth it and that the show would still be there. And now it's not. Still kicking myself about it...

 

[Winnowill]

The other thing about MSEP is that there isn't anything current about it. Pete's Dragon, of all things, is the highlight. After the opening float (featuring Mickey and Minnie and their friends), there's Alice, Peter Pan/Tink, Cinderella, Pinocchio, Snow White, and Pete's Dragon, plus the "To Honor America" float. Nothing more current than those. PtN had Cars, Toy Story, Frozen, all the other princesses, and much more.

 

[Butterfly123]

When we were there for the 60th we made time to see PTN three times in five days. We loved it. At least for our trip this summer we will only have to make the time to see the MSEP once. Nostalgic and enjoyable, but not the amazing parade PTN is. More time for other things!